Crewsium
by lloinng
Summary: The Annihilation movement has started. Humans from the "Perfect City in The Sky" have sent down mechs to complete destroy Earth "for the world to be clean again". Josh, Aaron, Will, and Evanz have been striving to survive for almost six months now. Can they make it to "Elysium", or will they be destroyed? Slightly based off of the movie. Rated T for swearing.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: *****ducks under rotten tomatoes***** I'm so sorry! I swear, my other stories will (eventually) be updated, but I got this really really cool idea, and I had to do it. Hope you like, and for my longtime readers, sorry? Ideas sort of pop up out of nowhere, and I can't stop them.**

**4/11/2014: Kia has now agreed to beta for me, thank you so much! :) **

"Will you two just SHUT. UP?!"

Josh and Aaron looked up from their squabbling, slightly embarrassed.

"I'm already in a lot of pain," Will hissed, holding the wet rag to his bloody head.

Evanz watched all of this from his post on his chair, bloodied leg propped up on the ice-cold metal table. He put down his book, sighing slightly. The yellowed pages were worn, the words were faded - like everything the survivors owned - and he could almost recite the content of the small book word for word, but it reminded him of the carefree times when he could go outside freely, for fun, and not have to avoid mechs which caused severe damage and/or death every time they were forced to go outside to collect resources.

Will's forehead was a prime example. He and Evanz had gone on a gathering trip a few days ago, and a mech had caught the two. Evanz barely managed to limp back home (which still didn't feel like home after six months of "imprisonment"), an unconscious and injured Will on his back. Luckily Josh had the correct medical supplies to patch the two up, but whenever the young man closed his eyes he could still see the giant robot, catching him unaware and swiping him away easily, bashing Evanz into a metal crate nearby. His back still ached, and he winced slightly as he remembered the clear _crack,_ and then the agony.

As Evanz came back to reality, Josh pouted and then got up with a groan (he still wasn't used to moving after half a year of scout missions and resource gathering, the poor guy) to check on their supplies. They could never tell the time anymore because of the horrible smog outside – it was a wonder they weren't dead from pollution yet – so they could only estimate when to do the checkup.

Suddenly, a voice rang out. "We definitely need more, guys."

Aaron cursed under his breath. "Does that mean I have to go?"

Evanz spoke up quietly. He'd remained almost silent ever since the Annihilation movement started and had been forced to flee from his homeland. Even though his life had never been particularly great ever since the people started building their "perfect city" in the sky, he liked his home better than this cramped living space. "You'll have to. Will and I pretty much can't move."

Aaron sighed, and grabbed his rifle from the table, gesturing to Josh who had his shotgun at the ready. "C'mon faggot, time to go."

Josh chased after him, shouting. "I'm not a faggot, bitch!"

Evanz shook his head, laughing slightly. Oh, the shenanigans those two got up to.

* * *

Josh held the gun in one hand, pushing his dirtied glasses up. "I don't see anything…" He whispered, coughing slightly against the dirt and dust being whipped up.

Aaron nodded back, a bare silhouette against the barren landscape. The two carefully crept across the street, heading for the supply bank. Almost all of the city's resources were stockpiled in there, and no mechs were guarding it. All they had to do was run across without getting discovered by the giant robots roaming the city, making sure there were no survivors.

Both of them readied their guns as they paused in the shadow of a metal container larger than either of them and then Josh, holding his weapon out in front of him, stepped into the rapidly darkening night.

As he prepared to make a run for it he was suddenly tugged back and pushed over by Aaron. He started, struggling as a small blush blossomed over his cheeks involuntarily at the extremely uncomfortable distance between the two. Ugh. "What the fu-" He was cut off as Aaron placed a hand over his mouth, gesturing in front of the two.

Josh paled as he heard the sound of a jetpack as a mech lumbered barely two feet from them, patrolling the abandoned city. He immediately grew quiet, scared that just a breath would alert the robot of their presence.

After an immeasurable amount of time the mech flew away and both let out a relieved breath. That was a close one.

After that, the duo made it to the warehouse without much trouble and looted whatever they could get their hands on. Frozen food, new clothes, first aid, and Aaron even managed to find a book. Evanz would be pleased.

* * *

"Is that…Is that a book?" Evanz looked up at the weary pair, just finished telling their tale.

"Might be." Josh grinned, holding it out to his friend.

Evanz took it, staring at the book softly, smiling a little. "The Fault In Our Stars…" He fingered the worn cover. The blue was almost rubbed off, but he could still recognise it. "John Green, huh?"

"Only thing I could find." Aaron grinned back at him, before moving to place everything in the freezer.

Will had fallen asleep already, the now dry rag lying on the floor. Josh sighed and bent to pick it up, putting it in the rusted sink.

Evanz adjusted into a more comfortable position, opening the book and coughing a little as clouds of dust billowed out.

Josh went inside their bathroom, presumably to shower, and Aaron could be heard still putting the supplies inside their stock room.

Just another normal night, then?

They all sincerely hoped so.

**Sorry about this being shorter than my usual stories, this is just a pilot. Once again, hope you've enjoyed, and if you did, comment down below on what you think! (Totally not stealing Youtube outros)**

**-Lavs**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Oh my god look it's a new chapter! :o**

"How many are in there?" A gruff voice commanded the skinny one.

The smaller man gave a huff, before squinting at the window with his pair of beat up military binoculars. "Uh…four." As the strong man behind him started angrily sucking in air to shout at his "sidekick", the skinnier man added rapidly. "Two of them seem injured though. I saw a boy with a blue hoodie and a blondie getting absolutely destroyed by a patrol mech."

"Good…" His superior whispered, satisfied. "Let's go in for the kill. They'll probably have tons of loot."

xxx

"Evanz, will you stop reading that book?!" Josh yelled, throwing his hands up in the air exasperatedly.

Evanz simply mock-glared at him, not saying anything. Will growled from the side, pushing his bangs away to aggravate his still sensitive wound less.

Aaron sighed, messing around with a stress ball he had found a while ago.

The four were just resting, not much to do. They had just finished their "lunch"; as close as they could get to it, at least, and the Crew were just lounging around, bored. After all, being cooped up in a building for half a year wasn't a pleasant experience.

Suddenly, a noise sounded from outside the door. The Crew immediately looked towards it, and Josh and Aaron drew their guns. All four were extremely tense; did the mechs finally find them?

Aaron cautiously moved towards the door, rifle at the ready. Just as he was about to open it, the door burst open. Josh didn't see what happened, but suddenly Aaron was on the floor, yelling in pain, and his ears were surrounded in loud noise.

He ducked behind the table, glancing over the top to see a skinny man disappearing into the "kitchen" as another held the four at gunpoint. Aaron was on the ground, gasping in pain, and as Josh attempted to run over, he was suddenly held at gunpoint.

"Don't. Move." The buff man growled, gun trained on him.

Josh gulped. There was Aaron on the ground, blood everywhere as he clutched his leg, Evanz, collapsed against the wall, breathing hard, and Will, nowhere to be seen. This was a very bad situation.

"Now, drop your gun." The robber's voice turned smooth, and Josh resisted the urge to squeak in panic. This was his one chance.

He walked towards the gun slowly, hands in the air. The robber seemed unimpressed by his nerdy look, but Josh used that to his advantage. Once he reached the robber, he used the split second he had.

With one swift move, the gruff man was on the ground, yowling in pain, and he shook out the numbness in his hand. Suddenly, he heard a shot, and agony exploded through his body. He felt as if knives were slowly cutting through his stomach, and he collapsed to the ground, breathing hard. The pain was too much for him to handle, and his vision grew dark as a figure appeared in the doorway, and the last thing he heard before his world grew dark was a loud gunshot.

xxx

"Josh. Josh! Josh!" He could faintly hear someone yelling his name desperately and shaking him. He wanted to tell the mystery person to go away. He was sleeping, and he didn't want anyone to disturb the calm. Suddenly, reality flooded through his numb brain, and his eyes shot open, mouth choking back a gasp.

The pain and the memories flooded back, and he held his stomach, making a choked scream at the amount of agony located at one spot. His hands were soon soaked, and he could feel the sticky texture of blood.

Through the immense pain, he could feel someone calling his name. A pair of arms gripped his shoulders tightly, and suddenly torture exploded through his stomach, making him scream again. His skin was wet, with sweat, blood, tears, he didn't know.

As the pain died down to a barely bearable amount, he could see Aaron finally releasing his tight hold on Josh's shoulders, wiping away beads of sweat from his forehead. Will was breathing hard, forehead wound bleeding again as he dropped a bloody bullet onto the floor, where it joined another in a pool of blood.

Aaron laid down beside him, and gripped his leg tightly. Josh winced again, feeling the pain level pick up. Will, seeing his expression, grabbed another pill from a small metal box he was holding and handed it to him. Josh weakly nodded in thanks, swallowing it before looking around for Evanz.

Evanz was sitting against the wall still, holding his leg so hard his knuckles turned white. He wasn't making a sound, but it was obvious from his face that he was extremely pained.

Josh managed to choke out. "Wh-what…happen…ed…" Then, the pain worsened extremely, and he gasped.

Aaron patted his arm awkwardly as Will explained. Apparently, he had gotten lucky and hid in the corridor, then shot the other robber who had tried to kill Josh. Nothing was lost, but the shelter was a mess. Things were thrown around, bullet holes in the walls, and just thinking about the noise made the headache Josh had increase. Oh god, what if the mechs found them?

They were at their most vulnerable right now. No one could even move aside from Will, who was still injured, let alone collect more resources.

He sighed. Hopefully things will pick up again…

However, nothing seemed to go their way, and just as the four were about to drift off, each in pain, jetpack noises sounded outside. Jetpack_**s**_.

All four immediately jolted awake, staring at each other with wide eyes.

They were found.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm sorry I'm so evil but I had to…**

Josh immediately sat straight up, wincing as the bullet wound on his stomach hopelessly worsened. The mechs zoomed past outside the small, dirty window, and Josh was acutely aware of how vulnerable the "Crew" was. There was him, shirtless with a hole through his stomach, Aaron, shot through the leg and incapacitated. Will was the only person actually capable of moving, as Evanz was still pale-faced and unmoving against the wall.

Suddenly, a small explosion sounded, and their window burst open, glass shards flying everywhere. Josh gasped in pain as a sharp edge grazed his arm, leaving some tiny pieces imbedded as blood flew through the air, following the glass shard. He attempted to get up, but as soon as he moved, pain flooded through his body, and he fell back down, breathing hard.

Aaron reached out and held Josh's hand tightly. Evanz sat in the corner, eyes closed, and Will crawled over, trying to ignore the explosions wracking the small building. He held the young man's face, shouting over the noises being inflicted at their shelter.

"Evanz!" He yelled. "It's fine! We'll be fine! Stop freaking out!" Even though both of them knew it was a blatant lie, Evanz opened his eyes again, peeking through his bangs. He looked somewhat younger than he was, blinking up at Will. Will smiled reassuringly and took his hand, trying to help him up. However, as soon as Evanz attempted to lift his leg, he collapsed back down, breathing heavily as tears threatened to spill.

As Will neared the edge of crying as well, Josh and Aaron managed to hold each other up, both gasping in pain as Josh doubled over and Aaron limped over to the two.

"We need to go!" Aaron shouted, wincing as the door, which had been hanging on its hinges, blasted open. "Evanz, come on!" Even without looking, the four knew that more mechs have gathered outside.

"How?!" Will shouted back, still on the ground, trying to get Evanz to stand up.

"I don't know, but we have to try!" Aaron yelled desperately, hobbling to the empty space that once held a door and gesturing at the two. Josh barely kept up with him, looking paler by the second.

Evanz eventually managed to stand up, but by now the small shelter was almost completely destroyed, fire and destruction everywhere. Will almost carried Evanz, barely managing to avoid the fire-filled ceiling crashing down, and still continuing despite the high heat and his burnt skin.

As soon as Will and Evanz arrived, a massive explosion wracked the refuge, taking a chunk out of the wall. As Josh bent over, coughing in extreme agony, Aaron gave up and straight up held him, limping out the hole. Will followed, barely managing to support Evanz.

As soon as they contacted the outside world, they wished they would've just stayed inside. Mechs surrounded their "house", firing various things at it. The shelter itself was wreck; there was no longer any part of it intact, and it was completely covered in flames.

Luckily, due to the size of humans compared to the massive robots, the mechs did not discover them at first, which was also because of the already high temperatures all around decapitating the mechs' heat sensor system.

The four struggled onward, all gasping in pain and lack of clean oxygen. Suddenly, Evanz turned around, and gasped as he saw a mech pointing his cannon at the four. Will, hearing the noise, turned around, but suddenly was pushed away, crashing into Josh and Aaron. The trio crashed into the asphalt road several feet away, but that didn't stop them from witnessing what was possibly the worst thing they have ever seen.

A bright flash of light engulfed where they had been mere seconds ago, and once it cleared, there was a pile of dust on the floor. A pile of dust that used to be their best friend and traveling partner.

Will stared, mouth open. Aaron and Josh were already trying to struggle up, but Josh had tears spinning in his eyes, and Aaron was biting his lip tightly, obviously trying not to cry.

The next few minutes, hour, or even days, he didn't know. He could vaguely remember struggling along the road with Josh and Aaron to the supply center, where he sat, staring at the empty wall. He could barely hear the faint voices around him, faintly registering the bowl of food placed next to him. He simply curled up, staring at the empty, bleak, wall. He didn't feel his physical pain, his burns and cuts, but rather this empty agony in his heart, tearing it open.

Evanz…Back when computers and Youtube were still a thing, they were often posed as lovers. Of course, they were all straight, and no one loved each other aside from the "friend way", but Evanz was Will's best friend. Josh had Aaron and Aaron had Josh, the best friends the world will ever see, but Evanz and Will were a duo. An inseparable duo. A duo that somehow got torn apart, left in a pile of ash on the ground.

"Will…"

"Will…Are you okay...?"

"Will…!"

"Will!"

"WILL!"

The broken man reacted slightly to the loud shout, moving his head by an inch. Suddenly, a hand gripped his shoulder tightly, and Aaron moved in front of him, blocking the wall. His eyes were soft, filled with guilt, pain, and sadness. "Will, I know you're sad. We are too. But you can't just be like this. Evanz wouldn't be proud of you like this, man. He sacrificed himself to save us. This isn't saving us. Cheer up. He'll forever be in our hearts."

That was when Will broke. His tears flooded out, and he sobbed into Aaron's shoulder, whispering incoherent broken phrases.

He didn't know when, but Josh sat next to him, and held his arm, crying alongside him. Aaron soon joined in, and the three sat there, crying for an immeasurable amount of time.

Evanz…

**DON'T KILL ME PLEASE**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Extremely short, but I was feeling emotional. :C**

Aaron winced and turned away as Josh made another choked agonized sound as Will attempted to clean his wound. Due to the unhygienic living conditions, Josh's stomach wound had gotten infected, and he was now like a wax figurine, covered in sweat, dust, puss, and blood. His leg was almost fine now, but Will now spent his almost every waking moment trying to help Josh. It was obviously, no matter how painful it was for him to admit it, going to take a miracle for him to make it.

Just the thought of his best friend being torn away from his life made him grit his teeth and close his eyes. Josh was so weak, he could barely do anything other than sit against the wall and breath heavily in pain.

"You don't have to watch if you don't want to." He reopened his eyes to Will staring at him, usually hard gaze softened.

Aaron bit his lip, shaking his head slightly, speaking in a soft voice. "I can take it."

"A-Aaron…" Josh whispered, moving his pale lips slightly. Aaron immediately walked over, kneeling down beside him. "Yes?"

"I'm fine…Sto-top worrying about mE!" Josh smiled weakly, trying to mask the extreme agony he was going through. He held out a trembling hand, placing it on Aaron's arm. Will stopped his treatment, and turned to Aaron, smiling with sad eyes and placing a hand on his shoulder.

Aaron's lips trembled, and he closed his eyes, trying to stop the tears. "J-Josh…"

He couldn't, and crystal drops carefully peeked out of his closed eyelids, rolling gently down his soot-filled cheeks, leaving a clean trail. They traced his pale face, over the defined cheekbones, then to the jaw. Then, they slid off, splashing to the floor silently, yet with so much impact.

Will gripped his shoulder tighter, pulling him into a hug as Josh coughed weakly, keeping his hand on Aaron despite the painful tremors.

Aaron sobbed. He couldn't stop it. People were dying, left and right, and he just wanted to sit in a corner and blot the whole world out, head in his hands.

"Maybe you should have some time alone." Will whispered, helping him stand up and returning Josh's hand to somewhere more comfortable. Aaron nodded, turning and heading into the storage room without a sound, tears still leaking out.

Will sighed, and turned to Josh yet again, who was crying as well. "Josh…You'll be fine, I swear it. I swear it on my life."

xxx

He collapsed against the wall, gasping heavily. In pain of the exertion put on his leg, the hurt of his friends, dying before his eyes, he didn't know anymore.

Instead, he did the only thing he knew how to do.

He sang.

"Summer has come and passed,"

_Oh, those carefree times…_

"The innocent can never last,"

_When he didn't have to worry…_

"Wake me up when September ends…"

_God please, kill me now!_

"Here comes the rain again,"

_The dust fills the air, chokes me…_

"Falling from the stars,"

_We fell so hard, yet so fast…_

"Drenched in my pain again,"

_So much pain, so much hurt…_

"Becoming who we are,"

_Why are we the ones who suffer? Who suffer so hard?_

"Ring out the bells again,"

_Let me be free again!_

"Like we did when spring began,"

_Where has the time gone?_

"Wake me up when September ends…"

_Save me…_

The tears fell continuously, an unending stream. He didn't know how to stop, how to stop the pain from wracking his body.

Simply, he cried. He cried until he couldn't anymore, until no drops would come, until he was sobbing emptily.

Then, he slept. The most peaceful sleep he'd had, yet so painful at the same time, filled with friends, and memories, and everything.

_Wake me up when September ends…_

xxx

Will turned his head away from the storage room door, gritting his teeth as tears spilt. He turned to look at Josh, who stared back, tears pooling in his eyes.

He closed his eyes, let a breath escape, before softly starting.

"Feeling my way through the darkness,"

_So much darkness in my heart…_

"Guided by a beating heart,"

_Still beating?_

"I can't tell where the journey will end…"

_Such a pain-filled journey…_

"But I know where to start,"

_Is it worth it?_

"They say I'm caught up in a dream,"

_Is this a dream? Is this reality?_

"Well life will pass me by if I don't open my eyes."

_Yet, why is it so hard?_

"So wake me up when it's all over…"

_When September ends…_

"When I'm wiser and older,"

_The innocent can never last…_

"All this time I was finding myself, and…"

_Becoming who we are…_

"Didn't know I was lost…"

_Drenched in my pain again…_

"_**Wake me up **__when September ends!"_

**Disclaimer: ****Wake Me Up When September Ends ****belongs to Green Day. ****Wake Me Up ****belongs to Avicii.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: New Chapter :)**

It was late afternoon when Josh started coughing blood.

It had started out as an okay day. The pollution wasn't as harsh as it always was, and Aaron could actually see faint strands of sunlight, barely penetrating the thick smog. Will, seeing that Josh was asleep, albeit wearily, was scribbling, sitting against the wall with his notebook. Aaron had been contemplating going through the supplies completely, something they had neglected doing because of the sheer amount of stray boxes placed haphazardly around the storage space.

Just when he had settled down for reading a book, the coughing started. He immediately looked over at Josh's direction, where his body was being wracked in a series of obviously painful coughs. Aaron stood at the back, hovering awkwardly while Will immediately rushed forward.

As Aaron started to close his eyes, Will turned to him, panicked.

"He's coughing blood!"

Aaron's body seemed to shut down, and everything slowed into black and white, fading as he watched Will scramble to save his best friend. He could see Josh, wracked with spasms, Will bent over him, trying to bring the life back into him.

He didn't know when he passed out, but suddenly the world turned completely black.

When he woke up, Will was hovering above him, sweat covering his face.

"You're awake." He said tersely, staring into Aaron's eyes intensely.

Aaron immediately scrambled to his feet, Will right next to him, helping him up as he felt a sudden lightheadedness. He gasped out, not caring about himself.

"Is Josh okay?!"

Will stared at him gently, with a sadness Aaron couldn't comprehend. Wouldn't.

"He's stable." As Aaron nearly collapsed with relief, he added, sighing. "Not for long, though. His condition is worsening. I can't do anything with the materials I'm working with."

This time, he did collapse against the wall, Will barely holding him up as he choked.

He stared at Josh across the space. He was leaning against the wall, once pale face stained with fresh blood, asleep, yet still twitching in pain.

"Let him live his last moments." Will whispered gently next to him, and he numbly acknowledged with a bare nod.

Aaron couldn't stop it. He started sobbing as soon as he stole another glance at the faux-peaceful form of his best friend. He wrapped his arms around Will, a gesture he would've never made had they not been in this situation.

Will patted his back, breathing into his neck gently as tears dripped down his face as well. Josh and Evanz, both valuable members of their "Crew", both painful losses to both survivors personally.

Eventually, Aaron moved away from the hug, and wiped away his tears, Will smiling sadly at him. The two turned their heads to look at Josh, still "peacefully" resting against the wall, a stream of blood dried against his cheek, splattering on to the floor.

"H…How long does he have?" Aaron choked out, leaning against the wall weakly.

"I don't know," Will patted his shoulder sadly. "But it's not long."

The two stood there, looking at their best friend for a long time.

xxx

He wanted to die.

His body was as good as dead anyways. His skin felt like it was inflamed, and heat practically radiating off his body. However, if the outside was the Sahara, the inside was the Antarctica. He could feel his insides freezing. The constant battling of the two extremes rendered him useless, barely able to resist the constant headache, and pushed discomfort to the line.

However, if that were the only thing wrong with him, Josh would gladly open his eyes and speak. As it was, he wasn't sure which part of him was in more pain. His stomach was a constant stream of agony, shooting spasms of pain through his body. His throat, however, felt like it was being ripped apart, fire at the back of it. Even something as small as breathing set his veins into agony overdrive, sending ripples of flames through to his stomach and throat, causing torture every time he tried to hold on. The streams of dried blood and puss covered his body, but he was too pained to care.

There was always that safe space, the heaven, where all his pain would disappear. He was already barely hanging on anyways. There was a reason he wasn't letting go, though. He was breathing, enduring this suffering, for his friends. He wouldn't succumb to the extreme pain, even if only to keep Aaron and Will from breaking down.

He could take it, he told himself. He could take the pain, take the torment. Sacrifice his own life for two more; it was a worthy trade.

Even as he sat there, thinking these things, there was always that part of the mind that wondered.

_Was it worth it?_

xxx

Aaron placed a hand on Josh's arm, biting his lip as he felt the heat radiating off the skin. His best friend's body was constantly being wracked with small shivers, almost unnoticeably tiny, which worried him. If Josh was too weak to even express his pain, how long would he last? 

Even though it was already extremely difficult to know if Josh was still alive, he could notice that the dust particles floating in front of his nose went in a slightly different direction, and each time they drifted, Aaron let out a sigh of relief. As long as they moved, Josh was alive, and they were fine.

His form tightened as he took in Josh's ravaged body. Dirt, grime, blood, and puss covered his body, barely leaving spots of the "vampire white" his skin had often been described with.

Conscious of Will's careful gaze on him, he tilted his head slightly, and let the tears fall.

xxx

The lone traveler staggered along the road, blood leaving a clear trail behind him as he collapsed against a tree. Days of traveling while extremely injured had left him incredibly weakened, but he didn't care about that.

All he cared about was revenge. Revenge for his partner. Revenge for his current state.

He grinned twistedly, dried blood cracking on his cheeks as he saw the dusty warehouse. He held up the syringe with a shaky hand.

Time to inject acid into some veins.

**Ooooooooooooooh~**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: If you can see the three references placed in this chapter, you get a hug from me :)**

"Maybe we should go outside for a bit; co-calm down." Will suggested quietly, before realizing that the outside climate was not one for "cooling down".

"Hm, maybe we should." Aaron replied equally as softly, standing up, and giving one last pain-filled glance towards Josh before joining Will.

Somehow, Aaron could feel his every step filled with hurt and regret. He didn't know why, but he was suddenly reluctant to leave his dying best friend.

"Maybe someone should stay inside, watch him…" He suggested, biting his lip as he snuck another glance behind him.

Will sighed, and grabbed hold of Aaron's hand, surprising him. "He'll be fine on his own. There isn't much he can do anyways." With a pause, he reluctantly added. "I know how much you worry about him, but you know what's going to happen if you sink even further into this worry."

Aaron choked slightly, looking away from his friend as the tears struggled to escape. His voice turned hoarse as he barely held back the storm of agony. "I know it's just going to hurt more, but I can't help it. W-Will, he's…he's my best fri-iend…" His voice broke at the last word, several teardrops starting to fall.

Will bit his lip, starting to gently pull Aaron outside. "He's my friend too. But, for now, we need to calm down, start to rationalize."

Aaron gave a Hollow laugh, yet let himself be pulled.

As soon as the two walked out the makeshift door, the dust and pollution surrounded them, making the duo cough a little. It was slightly worrying how Aaron and Will were already used to the 600 AQI, but that was one of the "perks" of living in the post-apocalypse world.

They walked for a bit, eventually sitting down on one of the dust-filled benches, staring at the bleak sky in front of them.

There was a silence between the two, yet not awkward at all as Will and Aaron allowed themselves to be wrapped up in their own thoughts, delving into the webs that were their minds.

Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, the bench they were sat on was not far from the storage space, and they heard the choked scream extremely clearly for the distance between the two spaces. The duo immediately stood up, recognizing Josh's voice despite the nature of the pain-filled shriek.

"Josh!" Aaron didn't care about the pollution as he sprinted, almost breaking down the entrance to their hidey-hole. However, as soon as he stepped inside, he stopped as he saw something horrific.

The robber who had shot him through the leg was holding his agony-filled friend by his arm as Josh choked from the torment. That wasn't the worst part however, as he was pointing a syringe at Josh's neck, where a vein was slightly visible.

Anyone with a proper education would recognize the liquid inside of the syringe as Crewsium-approved, highly concentrated, acid. The ones designed to torture, to maim, to watch the victim be incinerated from the inside out.

Aaron could vaguely see Will joining in beside him, but his mind was filled with insane Rage as he pointed the gun at the madman, pulling the safety back.

Will mimicked his movements, growling as the bloodstained man flashed a grin, pushing the sharp tip into Josh's neck, causing another pain-filled and hoarse noise.

"I suggest you don't do that." Will said, holding the gun steadily, gritting his teeth as he pointed the dangerous weapon at the robber.

"And why should I not?" The man grinned maniacally, holding Josh tighter as he ignored the injured man's tortured choke.

"I'll put a bullet through your brain the moment you even move an inch." Aaron cut in, growling as he trained his gun on the bloody robber's head, hand not shaking in the slightest even though his body was trembling in barely restrained anger.

The bloodied psychopath seemed to contemplate that for a moment, before laughing crazily.

"Death has never fazed me."

It took one second for Aaron to comprehend what the robber was doing, and another second for him to blast a hole through the man's head, but he was too late. It only took a second for the psycho man to inject the acid into his dying best friend's neck.

The room seemed to spin out of control as Aaron dropped his gun, barely registering the clang of the metal meeting the hard ground over the inhuman sounds coming out of Josh's mouth as he twisted into a position no man should ever be in, arching his back as far as it would go as the acid flowed through his veins, burning him to the death from the inside out.

Aaron dropped to the floor, back hitting the wall painfully, but he didn't notice as his eyes stared at the scene in front of him, tears flowing out.

When it was over and he saw the mound of black flesh that used to be his best friend, he leaned over, puked, and fell over, unconscious.

Will staggered upright as he struggled not to follow his friend's example, placing a hand over his mouth as he stared at the pile of black lying on the floor, barely recognizable as a person, let alone the two's friend.

There was a horrible acidic smell coming from that corner of the room, and, finally giving up, Will sat back down, letting go of whatever was left in his stomach before leaning against the wall, pale, tears dropping in a storm of emotions.

Two down, two to go?

**Signature Word of the Chapter: Acid**


End file.
